The Veterans Town

Skeeter Bite Productions presents "The Veterans Town," a film by director Justin Gausman. The Veterans Town is a feature-length political documentary about the community of Hot Springs, South Dakota and its unified fight to save its 107-year old Veterans Administration Hospital, a National Historic Landmark, from a proposed closure, as well as the VA's Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) program.

In December 2011, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced a proposal to close the VA hospital in Hot Springs, South Dakota, rocking the tiny rural town of 3,700 on the southern edge of the Black Hills of South Dakota. The loss would mean veterans served by the Hot Springs VA would have to travel further to receive care, and over 10% of the community's work force would be lost, with potentially devastating effects on the local economy, culture and lifestyle.

Close inspection of the VA's proposal revealed faulty assumptions and questionable data, so, against overwhelming odds, community leaders stepped up and formed the "Save the VA" committee, and dedicated themselves to seeking out the truth and designing an alternative plan to potentially change the course of veteran healthcare.

In the most politically turbulent years in recent history, Hot Springs residents rose above politics, ages, races and belief systems to unite in this effort and managed to garner support of 6 U.S. Senators and 2 State Representatives from South Dakota, Nebraska and Wyoming, the South Dakota state government and governor, leaders of the Oglala Sioux Nation (Several thousand veterans from Pine Ridge, one of the poorest places in America, are served by the Hot Springs VA,) organizations like the National Trust for Historic Preservation, South Daktoa State Historical Society, American Federation of Government Employees, National American Legion and many more, and fought their way through bureaucracy to meet with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki in early 2013.

In early 2014, Secretary Shinseki ordered the creation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) to assess the impacts of the proposal to close the Hot Springs VA.

Through interviews with community leaders, regional & state politicians, and local veterans, specifically Vietnam Veteran Donald L. Ackerman, "The Veterans Town" tells the inspiring David vs Goliath story of Hot Springs, of its historical significance, and discusses themes like patriotism, health care in America, the government's treatment of veterans, race relations between Native Americans and whites, and the realities of the costs of war.

RELEASE DATE

The Veterans Town is still in production. With new developments in January 2014 regarding a decision by Secretary Shinseki to begin the process of compiling an environmental impact statement as part of compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, "The Veterans Town" has begun to take shape formally. With hundreds of hours of footage, interviews with veterans and community stakeholders, and new data, the documentary will likely be released sometime in 2014. Check back here for more news about the release of the film and future showings.